Bulldogs Head to Ivy League Championships

Matt Lee. (photo by Sam Rubin '95, Yale Sports Publicity)

Mar 03, 2011

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - The Yale men's swimming and diving team heads to Harvard's Blodgett Pool Thursday as they look to make a splash at the 2010-11 Ivy League Championships. Last season, the Elis finished fifth overall - a mark they look to best following a regular season that saw them post wins over Brown and Dartmouth in conference meets.

The Bulldogs have boasted a powerful mix of age and youth this season, as the class of 2014 has burst onto the scene and established themselves as a force behind the leadership of a strong senior class. Captain Kyle Veatch has dominated the sprint events (50-yard free and fly) throughout this season as he has his entire career, and classmate Matt Lee has provided reliably strong contributions in the 500-, 1000-, and 1650-yard freestyle.

Both Lee and Veatch have been the beneficiaries of the presence of some impressive freshmen. Mikey Bogese evolved into an all-out star through the course of the season, posting top-three finishes in a variety of events in 2010-11. Some of his most spectacular performances came going head-to-head with Lee in the distance events, though he took first in the 200-yard backstroke in the Bulldogs' last regular-season meet against Brown.

Another freshman, Pat Killian, has been a stalwart in the sprint events and relay teams, while West Cuthbert and Danny McDermott have also been regular contributors in several different races. Cuthbert has also established himself as a big-time distance threat, giving Yale a trio of potentially dominating swimmers in those events.

The Bulldogs' breaststroking corps boasts juniors Alex Benz and Christopher Luu and senior Sam Goldsmith, to go along with McDermott, who has also been a factor in several meets this season. Sophomore Mike Dominski has followed up his stellar freshmen season with another strong one in 2010-11: an All-American in 2009-10, Dominski is a major component of Yale's relay squads, and has also been big in the backstroke and sprint events. Junior Goksu Bicer also came on strong late in the season, giving the Elis a powerful 1-2 punch behind captain Veatch in the freestyle and fly events. Dominski's classmate Jared Lovett has also displayed incredible versatility in his two seasons in New Haven, settling in this year as a multiple-time winner in the individual medley.

Yale will need all the depth it can get, as perennial powers Harvard and Princeton are as good as ever. Yet the Bulldogs certainly hope to avenge tough losses to teams like Penn (just a six-point decision in the loss), Columbia, and Brown - as well as their most ancient rivals, the Crimson and Tigers. Preliminaries begin at 11 a.m. Live stats are available via a link posted on the schedule on Yalebulldogs.com, and further information about the meet is available at: http://ivyleaguesports.com/championships/mswimdive/index